Curses Recasted
by keanamaris.enriquez
Summary: When Regina united all the realms, she didn't know the price of doing that and now, all the curses the people of Storybrooke have been through are re-casted.
1. Chapter 1

Regina was in the mayor's office when Snow comes in with a worried look on her face. "Snow, what's wrong?" The Good Queen asked. "Blue told me to give you this." She said, giving a piece of paper to Regina. Regina reads the paper. Her face changes to a worried look. "What did Blue say?" Regina asks her friend. "Blue said that uniting all the realms needed a cost." Snow says to Regina. "Regina if every curse we were put under will be re-casted, then we won't remember who we or loved ones are." Snow tells Regina. "We need someone willing enough leave their loved ones behind and go through the town line with the kids because once the curse hits, their parents won't remember who they are." Regina says. The two both agreed to tell all the realms about what will happen in two days.

The next day, Regina was at Granny's diner, eating. She looked around, seeing people from different realms spend time with their loved ones before the Dark Curse hits. Minutes later, Emma enters the diner and sits in front of Regina. "So did your parents said goodbye to each other?" Regina asked. Emma nodded, she tells Regina that the other Hook gave Snow something, so she could still be with Neal.

"Was anyone willing to leave their loved ones and Storybrooke?" The Good Queen asked the Savior. The Savior nodded. "Who?" The Queen asked, wanting to know who the brave soul was. "The Princess of Arendelle." Emma answered. "Said that she's used to being separated from people for a long time, she also said that she can get Hope and Lucy out of here." Emma says. Emma tells Regina that she taught Anna how to drive her bug. Regina tells her that she will remember who she is but doesn't know if Emma will remember who she is after the curse hits. She tells Emma that the curse will be broken on the same day it was broken years ago. "We need to wait 28 years for the first curse to break." Regina says. She hands her other sandwich to the Savior.

"Can't finish it all. It can help you get your mind off what's going to happen tomorrow." Emma accepts the sandwich.

The next day, Emma, Regina, Hook, Elsa, Kristoff, Henry, Ella, and Lucy arrived at the town line, they see Anna, wearing modern clothes, waiting for them. She got there on reindeer. Emma drove her bug inches before the line, got out, and gave Anna two keys. "One of them is the key to my apartment in New York." She tells the princess. She tells her that Hope is inside the bug along with the two storybooks. "Read them to her so she knows who her parents are." Emma tells Anna. "I will." She gives the princess an envelope full of money, and then goes over to Hook and hugs him, she turns around and sees Lucy giving Henry and Ella a hug goodbye and she runs over to the bug. They hear thunder banging, telling them that the curse is about to come. Lucy enters the bug. Before Anna could enter the bug, Elsa comes to her and gives her a hug goodbye.

"Be careful out there." The queen says to her little sister. "This isn't a final goodbye." Anna says to her. "I know, but when you return here years later, I won't remember who you are." The sisters gave each other another hug goodbye. Kristoff comes over once the sisters stopped hugging. "I'll see you again, feisty pants." The ice harvester tells his fiancée. They kiss. Anna enters the bug, Regina walks over to Emma, "I know why you allowed her to take Hope." Emma looks at her friend.

"The same reason why you gave up Henry. To give her a best chance." Emma nodded, telling Regina she's right. Anna begins driving out of town as both the green and purple smoke mingle and engulf all the realms. Once they cross outside of town, the line on the ground is no longer visible. Lucy looks from where they just came from. Anna glances down at her briefly and looks at Hope. Meanwhile, the curse is spreading through the remaining parts of town and engulfs the group that are watching the bug drive away.

Regina wakes up in her bedroom just like when she woke up in Storybrooke on the first day. She looks out of the window, sees the town of a new and updated Storybrooke and it is now a city and realizes that the new Dark curse have started. Regina walked down the street. The day was beautiful. The trees were changing colors and the sun was warm despite the chilling nips of autumn air. She didn't mind the cold. She walked down the street, head up high, enjoying the calm despite all the noise going on around her. Cars and school buses rolled up and down the street; people were heading to work or just getting an early start. They peppered the sidewalk, heading in all sorts of directions, each one with their own agenda. Likewise, she had an agenda of her own, only it seemed to be at a more casual pace than that of the people around her. Halfway to her destination, she ran into the town's therapist, Archie Hopper, walking his energetic Dalmatian companion. She stopped and smiled at them both, greeting them with a bright hello.

Then, she sees Marco struggling to repair a sign, she walks past by Ruby and Granny arguing. She walks past people who were from different realms know under the curse. She walks to what once were the realms were now different areas of the new Storybrooke. She headed to the mayor's office and when she went there, a familiar face greeted her. It was her sister Zelena, but under the curse, she was now Jade Greenes, she was the mayor's assistant and she was reserved and opposite of what Zelena is.

"Good morning, madame mayor." She says to the mayor. "Good morning Jade." Regina sits on her chair. "What's on my schedule today?" She asks her assistant. "You will be meeting with the new sheriff at the sheriff station near Forest Lane this afternoon." Regina thanked her assistant. "Do I have anything on my agenda for the morning today, Ms. Greenes?" Jade said no but told the mayor that she will have a town meeting with all the citizens of Storybrooke welcoming their new sheriff the next day. Regina thanked her assistant.

Regina waited for afternoon to come and headed to the sheriff station. Inside, someone with blonde hair and wearing a red leather jacket was waiting there for her. She sees the mayor. "Your Majesty." She says, curtsying to her. Regina smiles, "You remember." The Savior nodded. "The curse did one good thing here. It installed more cells in the station." Emma says looking at the two levels filled with jail cells. Regina tells Emma what the re-casted curse did to the other Realms. "I have an idea." The new sheriff says to the mayor. She whispers her idea to Regina. "Ms. Swan, as the Good Queen of the Former United Realms and Mayor of this new Storybrooke. I like this plan of yours." They shook hands and set their plan in motion.

"How about we go to Granny's and get ourselves some hot cocoa with cinnamon, Ms. Swan?" Emma smiled at the mayor and left the station. The next day, people crowded the Town Hall, waiting to meet the new sheriff of Storybrooke, they go inside and sat down, waiting for the meeting to start. A few minutes later, it starts, and Regina and Emma walk to the stage. Regina stands in front of the podium.

"Hello, citizens of Storybrooke, I would like to meet the sheriff of this city, Emma Swan." The citizens in the room applaud as Emma waves to them. Regina signals Emma to speak. "Hi, as a new townsfolk and sheriff of Storybrooke, I would like to get to know something all about all of you. For the next several days, the mayor and I will go door-to-door and talk to you and tell me all about you. We will write what you tell me on a file so I can remember." Emma tells the audience. "I hope that any of you don't have the ability to alter memories, otherwise that would be a problem." She joked, the audience laughed, not noticing the wink exchange between the mayor and the sheriff. "Thank you and have a wonderful day." The audience leave the city hall.

* * *

After several days, Emma went around the new Storybrooke and got to know the citizens of Storybrooke, new and old. Regina told her that some of those who were part of the curse, their personas from the Dark Curse are different from this curse and she gives Emma the addresses for the people that Emma will interview. Emma finds her true love, Killian, whose cursed persona was James Hook. They learn from him and from other people that James has lived in Storybrooke for as long as he can remember. He lost his hand working as a fisherman, and then picked up a job as a bartender at the local watering hole, The Rabbit Hole. He's a gambler by nature and very popular with the female residents of Storybrooke. Others even told Emma that before she became the sheriff of the city, James was often on the wrong side of the Sheriff's jail cell for disorderly and drunken conduct, but there were no hard feelings involved. James also tells Emma that his twin brother lives at the house in front of his with his daughter.

Emma goes to the other house and interviewed the cursed personas of the Wish Realm Hook and Alice. Under the curse they are Jason and Merefith Rogers. Emma learns that Jason was born without a hand and he used to drink, Jason also tells Emma that grew up without a mother and with an absent father, but he and his brother were always there for each other and James would look out for Jason because he would get bullied by other kids. He also tells Emma that he and James also had a brother named Liam, who dies because of an illness. He met his wife a few years ago and Meredith was born later.

He explains that he and his wife were driving home late at night during a strong storm after a party and Jason lost the control of his car. When he woke up in the hospital, he found out that he had lost both his hand and his wife in the accident. He used to go to the bar and blame himself for what happened, but his daughter would help him control his drinking. Emma then asks Jason to tell her about his daughter. Jason tells Emma that Meredith is the nicest girl you will ever meet. She will talk to anyone and knows how to make any frown turn upside down. She is known to burst into a bit of giggles at any given moment. She's the one you know to call if you are in any amount of trouble and certainly lives the high road. Meredith is strangely optimistic, even in times where you wouldn't expect anyone to be.

After interviewing the three people, Emma asked Regina to help her find Snow and David. Regina leads Emma to the Blanchard Loft and Emma interviews Snow, now Mary Margaret Blanchard. Emma learns that her cursed mother is still a teacher and she was the same person she was when she was cursed. Regina also tells her after Emma's interview with Mary Margaret that her mother visits the hospital to take care of the patients and tells Emma that her father is not in a coma and he works as a vet.

Emma then headed to Hyperion Lane and went to a house with the numbers of 815, and then she knocked on the door to interview the person who turned out to be Henry, who under the curse is Hal Henriks. She learns from other people and from Hal that he is one of the city's taxi driver, and he is one of the friendliest people you could ever meet. He is always that shoulder to cry on, he will listen and be there for you. He also is that natural leader, but only takes control when it is absolutely needed. Another good quality is that he is optimistic all the time. He only sees the good side of situations, and hopes for the best. Hal is also very charitable, his passion is in helping other people. He helps others so much, he often forgets to think about himself. That is one of his best qualities, is that he is so selfless and doesn't do anything for him.

As she interviewed all the people of Storybrooke, she learned what the curse had done to the other people who were not part of Regina's curse years ago. She goes to the house by the docks and interviews Arianna Thetis or Ariel. Arianna tells Emma that she is the music teacher at the the local high school, she is a very kind person, and wants her students to succeed. She will happily help them with any assignments they are finding difficult. She says that she isone of the best singers in town and will sometimes perform at Mickey's, but would rather not. She prefers swimming in the lake, but will visit the pool sometimes. Then, when she leaves the house she sees Prince Eric on the docs, cutting fish heads. She heads over to him and interviews him. He tells her that his name is Eric Bering. He tells him that he is someone who never stays in one place. Though he has lived in Storybrooke his whole life and has explored every part of Storybrooke, he dreams of one day travelling the world and seeing all there is to see.

She then headed over to a brown colored house on the corner of Desert Lane. Emma knocked on the door and a black haired woman opened the door and Emma starts interviewing her. Emma knows this woman as the Princess of Agrabah or Jasmine, but under the re-casted curse, she is known as Jessica Gilmer. She tells Emma that was born to the wealthy businessman and his wife, though all the money in the world could not save her mother's life, who died in childbirth. When her father decided to retire, she took advantage of her position and asked for the chance to take over, which her father agreed to. She decided that she needed to take some time before her father's retirement to learn more about the world outside of her sheltered life,. With her father's blessing she took off to Storybrooke a lived in the city. She tells Emma she lives her life the way she wants to. She doesn't want to go by any rules, it is about her and she will write her own story. She doesn't want to live by some dream that every one seems to be hung up on.

She headed over Yellow Drive and stopped in front of a rainbow colored house. She knocked on the door and the cursed persona of Dorothy or Angela Brick answered the door. Emma then started the interview. Angela tells Emma that she is a pharmacist at Dark Star Pharmacy in Storybrooke, she says that the customers' favorite part about the grocery store is their interactions with her, because she is someone who always knows exactly to how to brighten up a gloomy day.

Then, Emma headed over to Bear Street where the cursed persona of Merida lived. Emma knocked on the door and the cursed Merida answered the door. They sat in the kitchen and they started the interview. She tells Emma that her name is Nita Bowman. She teaches survival skills that include archery, tracking, and campsite set-up. Emma asks her what she does in her spare time, Nita tells her that she drinks at The Rabbit Hole and reads up on Scottish history, because she finds herself drawn to the topic. All in all, her life in Storybrooke is a busy one, and she likes it that way. Then, her mother came in the kitchen and sees Emma interviewing her daughter and asks her if Emma can also interview her too. Emma nodded and after she interviews Nita, she goes to the living room and interviewed her mother, her name is Emelie Bowman. She owns and works at a daycare. Her favorite thing to do is put on little magic shows for them, with her specialty being pulling a rabbit out a hat

Several minutes later, Regina gave Emma a call to tell her that there are only four people left for Emma and her to interview. Regina suggests for each of them to interview two people to make it faster. "Text me those who are left and I'll choose who to interview." Emma types to Regina. Regina texted Emma the addresses and place where the remaining people live and work. Emma sees that three of the remaining people to interview were Elsa and Kristoff , so she chose those two and Regina chose the remaining two who were Lily and Tinker Bell.

Emma sees that the cursed Elsa and Kristoff live by each other at Snow Road and headed over there. She looked at the two houses and went to the house with reindeer antlers on the door. She knocked on the door and a sandy blonde pony-tailed man answered the door and sees the sheriff and invited her in to do the interview. He tells her that his name is Chris Harvester as a brown Great Dane walked over to his side. He tells Emma that he is a gym teacher at the gym and when he's not at work he likes to lock himself up with his music. He is a guy who can play any instrument he can touch, one instrument he likes playing is the lute. He tells Emma that if he wasn't a gym trainer, he would be a composer, but knows he will never be that good. Before she leaves for the house next door, Chris stops her, "Are you going to Liz's house? The blue house?" Emma nodded. "I can tell you about her. Elizabeth "Liz" Frost. She is awkward and is nervous around people, but not me because I'm her best friend. She works at Any Given Sundae." Emma writes it down on Liz's file. "She also can't help listening and dancing to Ice Ice Baby." He tells Emma that Liz is a very reserved person and keeps things to herself.

Emma says goodbye to Chris and goes outside and walks back to the sheriff station. As she walked back, Regina texted her to go to Granny's.

One year later, Emma finished her sheriff rounds and returns to the station. She sees Adan Threets or Aladdin in one of the cells. She goes to his cell, "Mr. Threets, I thought you learned your lesson?" She says to him. "Well, you know me, I never learn from my mistakes." He says to her, Emma could smell the alcohol from his mouth. "I'm guessing the mayor brought you here after seeing you sleeping on her property." She says to him. "Yep." She then returns to her desk sees some application papers for more sheriffs on the desk and works on that. She reads one application with the name Walter Raines and reads his application on why he should be sheriff.

One of the computers gave a bell sound, letting Emma know someone sent her an e-mail. She checks the computer and sees an e-mail that had the name "First walk". Emma clicks on the mail. There was a video and a message on top.

The message says, "Your parents missed your first walk, you missed Henry's. You're not missing Hope's first walk. You're welcome Grandma. There's more to come - Lucy." Emma watched the video and sees Hope with the help of Anna walking. Emma smiles. As several years pass, Lucy sends more and more pictures and videos of Hope to Emma, letting the Savior know that Hope was okay.

* * *

11 years later, Emma is in her sheriff car, reading files. Regina walks up to the sheriff car, with box in hand.

"Good evening sheriff." Regina says to Emma through the open window.

"Good evening madame mayor." She looks at the box. "What's in that box." Regina opens the box, revealing a muffin inside.

"Happy Birthday, Sheriff. You're making a lot of changes in this city." Emma smirked.

"I'm doing more than changing things in here. Let's just say I'm like a matchmaker."

Then, they see Hal and Jacinda leaving Granny's and they crossed the street, heading to Hal's Toyota.

Hal and Jacinda are about to kiss when the sound of an engine is heard in the distance. A woman on a motorcycle turns the corner and parks across from Jacinda and Hal. There is a large wooden box on the back of her motorcycle. Emma and Regina watch from afar, smiling. The woman takes off her helmet and approached Hal and Jacinda. The woman had strawberry blonde hair and wore glasses.

"Is this Storybrooke?" She asks them. Hal nodded.

"Uh, you're staying?" Hal asks her.

"That's the plan. Just looking for a room or two." She tells him. Just as she says that, a yellow bug appears and stops by the woman who goes to the driver and whispers something to them. "Hey, what's the name of the place?" She asks them.

"Granny's Bed and Breakfast is just up the road – another two blocks." Jacinda tells the woman. The woman thanks them. She turns around and walks back to his motorcycle. "Hey, I didn't catch your name." Hal says to the stranger. "Well, that's because I didn't give it." She says to them. She drives off and the yellow bug follows after her, leaving Hal and Jacinda alone. The stranger and the yellow bug driver drives past Emma and Regina. "Long time, no see, Princess of Arendelle." Emma says.

Regina then looks up to the clock tower which has never moved during the years. Emma joins her. They wait for something to happen and then the clock starts moving and the duo smile.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day, Mary Margaret, while eating breakfast, notices that the clock is working again. Emma looks out the window in her room in her house. Archie is walking his dog, and Ruby is putting out the sign for Granny's Diner. Regina is at her house, almost dressed up. She hears the doorbell ring. She opens the door and checks who is ringing the bell, there was no one there, but when she looks down, she sees a familiar book on the doormat. She smiles and picks up the book. She hears a car horn and looks at the street where a car drives past her house. The clock chimes, causing Regina to look up. Regina heads to the town square. A few minutes later, Emma joins her. Archie is out walking his dog.

"Hey, how about that? Guess those rusty ol' innards finally straightened themselves out, huh?" Archie says to them. Regina sees the stranger's car and motorcycle parked on the side of the road. She gets Emma's attention and points to the car and motorcycle. Emma knocks on one of the doors two of the strangers were in. She has a basket of apples. Regina knocks on the other door the stranger on the motorcycle was in. The door Emma knocked on opened and a woman with blonde hair and blue eyes came out of the room and looked at Emma.

"Did you know the Honeycrisp tree is the most vigorous and hearty of all apple trees? It can survive temperatures as low as forty below and keep growing. It can weather any storm. I have one that I've tended to since I was a little girl. And to this day, I have yet to taste anything more delicious than the fruit it offers." Emma gives her an apple. "Welcome to the city of Storybrooke." Emma says to the blonde. "Hey cuz, catch." She threw the apple behind her and a woman with black hair and brown eyes caught the apple. Before she could react, the woman hugged Emma. Emma hugged back. Regina who was still knocking on the other door stopped and looked at them and smiled. "Mama." Hope says as they hugged. "Did Lucy or Anna read the storybooks for you?" She feels Hope nodding.

Emma stopped hugging Hope and looked at Lucy who ran to Emma and hugged her. "Thank you for the videos and messages you emailed me." She says to Lucy. "You're welcome grandma." Lucy says. "Call us grandma after this first curse breaks." Emma tells her as Regina continues to knock on the other door. Lucy tells Regina that Anna is at Granny's.

In Granny's Anna is reading the newspaper and eating eggs and bacon. Then, Ruby serves her a cup of hot chocolate. "Thank you. But I did not order that." She tells Ruby. Ruby tells her that they told her to give it to Anna. She sees the mayor and sheriff at another booth. She walks over and puts the hot chocolate in front of them. "Someone wants to talk to you and give you something." Emma tells her, and she tells Anna to sit with her. A few minutes later, a familiar man with a cane walks his way to the three ladies came to them and sat with them.

Confusion struck Anna as she saw the man that was Rumplestiltskin go to them and sat with them. "I-I don't understand! How are you alive and here? You sacrificed your heart to stop the evil version of you to save the other Hook's life." She says to him. The price of uniting all the realms caused more than re-casting all the curses we have been through in this place." Regina tells Anna. "This price also brought back those who have died in every realm." Emma says to Anna. "What do you mean by those who have died in every realm?" Anna asked Emma.

"What Miss Swan meant to say was those who have no more unfinished businesses have been brought back." Rumple says. He looks at Anna, "Your mother, your father, Ingrid." He looks at Emma, "Neal." He then looks to Regina. "Robin, Daniel, your father, Cora." He then again looks at Anna. "But, I'm not here to discuss about why I am here because they were going to tell you, but I'm here to talk to you, Princess, to take over my shop."

"Excuse me?" Anna says, confused. "Take over your shop?" Anna repeated. Gold nodded, "My son... other son is cursed and doesn't remember being the son of the Dark One and Belle, I chose you because you have trust issues, you don't trust someone right away after meeting them and becoming their friend, and from experience, I know you don't trust me and you don't trust me know, but I know I can trust you." Gold says to Anna. He takes out his hand, "Do we have a deal?" He says to her, waiting for her to shake his hand. She does, "We do." She says. Gold gives Anna two keys, one for the pawnshop. "What's the other key for?" Anna asks him. "Your kingdom is now part of this new and updated Storybrooke, one of the houses that the area that used to be Storybrooke was your castle. This key will unlock that." He explains.

"I have been here for too long, I should get going. Miss Swan, Your Highness, keep things as is like what happened in the Dark Curse years ago." Gold tells them. He leaves Granny's. Anna asks what the ladies what Rumple meant on what he had said. "Whatever happened during the Dark Curse years ago, must need to happen on this curse or else the curse won't break." Emma says to her "We had to do things we didn't want to do if we want this curse to break. Like putting my father in a coma." Emma says. Anna asks Emma who Elsa and Kristoff became in the curse and Emma tells her. Emma and Regina tells Anna that they have to go and leaves their side. They leave Granny's.

A few minutes later, Anna leaves Granny's and as she goes back to her room, she decides to go to Gold's shop. The store was close, she uses the shop key that Gold gave her and opens the door and goes inside. The shop was filled with many items Anna could not tell how much there was. She sees a piece of paper taped to the cash register, "You own the shop now, not me not, Rumplestiltskin. You own this shop now."

Then, the door opens and Anna turns around to see a woman with black curly hair and brown skin standing in front of her. "Hi, how can I help you?" She asks the woman in front of her. "I'm sorry for barging in, my name's Zadie Frogger. Are you covering in for Mr. Gold. He's been gone for years." She says to Anna. "I'm actually taking over my uncle's shop, he died a few days ago." Anna tells Zadie. Zadie then leaves the shop.

* * *

The next day, Anna was on her way to her motorcycle and go to the pawnshop with Henry's second storybook in her hand. She opens the wooden box behind the seat, the box contained an urn that Anna not only was familiar with but made her scared to touch it. On the urn was a small note. "We are not the only ones that are brought back from the dead, items that have been destroyed have been brought back as well. Those that are dangerous, we trust that keep them same and away from others starting with this. -I" The letter I gave Anna a clue to who gave her this object, Ingrid, she smiles knowing that she is not in the Underworld. She then starts the motorcycle and drives to the pawnshop. She gets to the shop and before she goes inside, she looks across the street and sees her cursed sister going inside Any Given Sundae. She crosses the street and goes to the store window and watches her sister inside.

She goes in the store, Liz sees Anna inside. "Hi... how can I help you?" Liz asks Anna, nervously as she tries to grab the ice cream scooper. Emma was right, she was nervous and awkward when she is around people even if it was just one person. "Can I have a chocolate ice cream in a cone?" Anna watches Liz scoop the ice cream and places it in a waffle cone. She gives it to Anna and Anna gives her ten dollars and Liz gives her some change. As Anna leaves the store, licking the ice cream, she drops some coins and she picks them up. Chris comes in the store with his Dane and helps Anna pick up the coins. "Thank you." Anna says to him. "You're welcome." Chris says to her. "You're one of the visitors right?" Chris asks her. Anna nodded. "Do you need help on where everything is on this city?" Anna tells him that she is okay going around the city. "If I need any help on where a store or restaurant is, maybe I'll find you." She says to him. Chris smiles at her. Anna leaves the store and goes to the pawn shop.

* * *

At the hospital, the kids from Mary Margaret's class along with Neal and the cursed Wish Realm Henry are running around and helping. Mary Margaret notices Henry in the room with John Doe. He's about to touch his face when Mary Margaret walks in. "Henry. We could really use your help with the decorations." Mary Margaret tells her grandson. Henry asks her is Mr. Doe gonna be okay.

"His name's not John Doe, honey. That's just what they call people when they don't know who they are." Mary Margaret says. Henry asks her is he knows who he is. "Nope. Just bring him flowers on my rounds. No one's claimed him." Mary Margaret tells him. The two leave.

Back at Granny's, Emma and Regina are having lunch when Henry comes in and comes to them and the two sees him. "I found Prince Charming." He says to them. "What?" Emma says, shocked. "You're awake." Regina says, smiling. Emma asks him how he is awake. He tells him that his father gave him a drink that made him wake up. Emma looked at Regina, "You know what I'm thinking right?" Emma asks her. "Yes, unless its not the same thing that happened years ago." Regina goes on her phone and calls Mary Margaret.

A few hours later, Mary Margaret comes in the diner and sits with the mayor. "You said you wanted to talk to me." Regina nodded as Ruby gives the two a cup of hot cocoa. "I know you help the patients at the hospital. I want you to do something that might be weird to you, but I think it might help the patients, starting with John Doe." She says to her. Regina gives the brown storybook to Mary Margaret. "Read this to him and meet me tomorrow here, and report what happened." Regina says to her. "You want me read to a coma patient?" Mary Margaret asks the mayor. "I know this sounds weird, but someone told me that it works." Regina says to her. Mary Margaret takes the book and leaves.

Mary Margaret sits with John Doe in his room at the hospital. "Look, I know this is odd, but I'm doing it for the mayor. So please, just bear with me." She says. Mary Margaret starts reading to John Doe. She reads the story about Snow White and Prince Charming. Near the end of the story, John Doe reaches out and grabs her hand. She calls for Dr. Whale, but he says all the instrument readings are still steady, with no changes. He suggests that she might have dozed off and imagined things.

"Miss Blanchard, I can only tell you what I see, which is nothing. Sometimes there are minor fluctuations in readings. Perhaps you heard the machine register something and misunderstood? Look, why don't you go home, get some rest. If anything changes, I'll call you, okay?" He says to her. Once Mary Margaret leaves, Dr. Whale calls Regina and she answers her phone in her office, Emma is with her and Whale tells her what happened, including the fact that Mary Margaret was involved and that there was some minor brain-wave fluctuation.

The next day, Regina is at the diner, waiting for Mary Margaret. Mary Margaret comes in to tell her that John Doe grabbed her hand. She is pleased and tells Mary Margaret that she has to read not only to him again, but to the other patients. Regina's phone rings and she answers it, and minutes later, she hangs up. "We need to go to the hospital." Regina says. They leave the diner.

Regina and Mary Margaret arrive at the hospital. They see Henry and Neal and Henry informs them that John Doe is missing. The two notice that Emma is in John Doe's room. Emma sees them, and approaches them. "What happened to John Doe? Did someone take him?" Mary Margaret asks her. "We don't know yet. His IVs were ripped out but there's no sign for sure there's a struggle." Emma says to her. Emmabegins organizing the search and talks to the two employees, Leroy and Walter. They check the security tapes, and Emma realizes it is the wrong tape. When they find the right one, they confirm that, four hours ago, John Doe walked out, on his own, into the nearby woods.

Emma calls for backup and tells Mary Margaret that she wants her to stay behind, but she disagrees and wants to go with them. Mary Margaret feels it is her fault that David woke up and ran off. She threatens to go off on her own. After hearing that, Emma agrees to let her come.

Emma and Mary Margaret are in the woods searching for John Doe. They follow John Doe's trail. Mary Margaret asks Emma why she became a sheriff. Emma replies that she has wanted to be some kind of police officer of some city. When Mary Margaret pushes the issue and asks about her parents, Emma says that she never did find her parents and they abondoned her when she was a baby. As they search the woods, Emma calls them over. She has found John Doe's patient tag with blood on it.

They come to the Toll Bridge, the duo finds John Doe lying in the stream. Emma pull him out, and Mary Margaret begs him to come back to them, and to her. She administers CPR, and he finally revives. Looking up, he says that she saved him, while an astonished Emma looks on. John Doe admits that he does not know who he is, and Mary Margaret tells him that he will be okay. John Doe is brought in. Everyone is back at the hospital. Mary Margaret watch through the glass as he is being treated by doctors. Kathryn, his wife, bursts into the room where John Doe is being treated and rushes to his side, calling him David. " Who is that?" She asks. Regina walks up behind them, telling her that she is John Doe's wife.

At the hospital, Kathryn and David are in the room together. Emma, Regina, Mary Margaret, Henry and Neal are outside David's room. "His name is David Nolan. And that's his wife, Kathryn." Regina tells them.

Kathryn comes over to Mary Margaret and Emma in the hospital, thanking them for their help. She explains that she and her husband had been having marital problems, so she had told him that, if he did not want to be married to her, he should leave. She had assumed that he left town and did not know that he had been injured. Now Kathryn has a second chance, to say she is sorry. Dr. Whale tells everyone present that David is physically okay, but he has no memory of his past life. Dr Whale suggests that David's first instinct was to find something familiar.

As Regina leaves, Mary Margaret catches up to her and points out that Kathryn's story sounds fake. She points out how convenient it is that Regina just now found Kathryn, and Regina says that after Emma went over the tapes, they checked past tapes and found out that David mentioned Kathryn's name in his sleep from time to time. The mayor tells Mary Margaret that true love won out and, that thanks to her, the couple will now be together forever. Regina says that not having someone is the worst curse imaginable and leaves. Mary Margaret watches as Kathryn and David embrace. He looks up at her and seems to recognize her, while Mary Margaret looks at the ring that she is wearing.

* * *

Anna leaves the pawnshop and gets on her motorcycle. Instead of going to the bed and breakfast. She heads to Snow Drive. When she gets there, she looks at the houses to determine which of the houses used to be the Arendelle castle. She stops once she sees a mansion from a far away hill. She drives to the hill and places her motorcycle against a tree. She takes a flashlight from her bag.

She walks to the house and unlocks the door with the key and goes in the house. She turns on her flashlight and explores the mansion. As she explores it, she sees the some objects are covered in cobwebs and some are covered by covers. She then removes one of the covers covering a portrait on the wall. The portrait shows her father and mother. She then hears a noise behind her. Anna slowly swings her flashlight, looking for the source of the noise.

She walks around, "Show yourself." Anna demanded to whoever made that noise. "I'm warning you, I fought an ice giant, survived a wolf chase, and fell from a cliff." She loudly stated. She didn't expect for someone to speak back. "Now, Anna dear, you are a princess. A princess should not yell." A deep voice said. "I think she already knows that. She is a teenager." A calming and soothing voice said back.

"Wh-who are you? Show yourselves...please." She demanded. She suddenly hears footsteps coming towards her and and it got louder and when they came into view, Anna was speechless. "No way." She says smiling.


	3. Chapter 3

Several days passed, it was early December and winter was coming, Hope is at Granny's Diner. Ruby serves her a cup of cocoa. Emma enters the diner and sits with Hope. "Why aren't you at the sheriff's station?" Hope asks her. "I should be, but I wanted to talk to you." Emma says. "I talked to Lucy, she told me about how you tried to find a job in New York, but couldn't find any." She says. "How about a job here? Storybrooke could use another deputy." Emma says. "There's a lot of sheriffing going on around here because of the recasted curse and two sheriffs can't stop all the crime." Emma says. Hope asks who the other sheriff is. Emma tells her that her father is the other sheriff. "Well, here's your chance to see all the sheriffing up close. Why don't you think about it?" Emma gets up and leaves the diner. Hope goes to stand up and spills her cocoa over her shirt. Ruby walks over and hands her a cloth.

She heads to the laundry room in the restaurant to wash her clothes. There's a young woman in the room, as well. She is holding pink sheets. "Oh, no, no, no, no!" Zadie yells and Hope asks her what is wrong. The woman tells her that the sheets are pink. Zadie puts down the sheets and it becomes obvious that she's pregnant. She tells her that she felt contractions last night and the doctor told her that her baby could come any day. She tells Emma that no one thinks she can take care of the baby, because she is only 19.

"I was 18 years old when she had a baby." Hope lies to Zadie, telling her about Emma.

"Yeah. I know what it's like. Everyone loves to tell you what you can and can't do, especially with a kid. But ultimately, whatever you're considering doing or giving up, the choice is yours." Hope says.

"It's not exactly what you might think it is." Zadie tells Hope.

"It never is. People are going to tell you who you are your whole life. You just got to punch back and say, 'no, this is who I am.' You want people to look at you differently? Make them. If you want to change things, you're going to have to go out there and change them yourself, because there are no fairy godmothers in this world." Hope says.

* * *

Anna closes up the pawn shop for the night and leaves. Zadie is waiting by the side of building. Once she is gone, she breaks the window on the door with a brick, unlocks the door and enters. She heads to the back of the pawn shop and finds a hidden safe. However, Anna walks up behind her.

"Zadie, what are you doing?" Anna asks her.

"I'm sorry but, I'm changing my life." Zadie responds.

She maces Anna, she falls, hits her head and is knocked unconscious. Zadie takes the keys from her and unlocks the safe.

* * *

Emma is making food at her house, Hope is with her. There's a knock at the door and Emma answers it, Anna is on the other side of the door. "Emma, I, uh… I need your help. I'm looking for someone." She tells her. "Who are you looking for?" Emma asks her.

"She told me that her name is Zadie Frogger and the deceased Dark One told me that she took something of his." Anna explained. "Do you want me to find her or call the police?" Emma asked her. "Find her. Because, uh… She's a confused young woman. She's pregnant. Alone and scared. I don't want to ruin this young girl's life." Anna explained.

Emma asks her when she saw last Zadie. "Last night, that's how I got this." She shows Emma the cut on the side of her head.

Please help me find her. My only other choice is the police, and I don't think anyone wants to see that baby born in jail now, do they? " Anna says.

"Did Gold tell you to say that to me?" Emma asks her. Anna smirks and nodded. "Like you said, whatever happened during the first curse years ago, needs to happen here if we want this curse to be broken."

Emma smiles at her then goes outside and Hope is following her, telling her that she wants to help her find Zadie because she accepts Emma's offer of becoming a sheriff. Emma tells Hope to get in the car.

* * *

Meanwhile, Mary Margaret and David are playing hangman in David's room at the hospital. ary Margaret asks if he played hangman a lot "before", and David responds that he doesn't know, looking perplexed. Mary Margaret assures him that his memories will come back, pointing out that he'll be going home in a week, so he must be progressing. David replies that he's progressing physically, and Mary Margaret points out that he's making new memories just fine.

She asks if he wants to play again as Kathryn Nolan arrives, asking if she can play too. Awkwardly, Mary Margaret gets up to leave, and Kathryn jovially wishes her a good day. She sits down a box of pictures in front of her husband, saying she hopes they'll help him remember. As Mary Margaret looks on nearby, Kathryn shows David a picture of their old dog, Ajax. David takes the picture, reacting as if he remembers the dog.

A few hours later, Mary Margaret is leaving the hospital for the day. She says goodbye to a patient. David enters the room and asks her where she is going.

"Home. I'm done for the day. Shouldn't you be resting?" She asks him.

Dr. Whale wants me to start physical therapy. I'm supposed to walk thirty minutes a day on a treadmill or outside with an escort. But they were kind of short on personnel because of that thing that happened at the mine. So… Maybe if there was a volunteer willing to help?" He tells her. They go outside and walk by the water.

'I'm trying to remember this place. It's like… It's like I woke up in some strange land." David tells her.

"Is there anything coming back? What about when you're with her? You remembered your dog." Mary Margaret asks.

"Yeah, I lied. She's so loving and I didn't want to disappoint her. But none of it feels right. You know, a dog named Ajax? Who would name their dog that? None of it makes sense. None of it… None of it feels real. Actually, one thing does feel real. You. I know it's crazy, but I swear you're the only thing in this whole place that feels… That feels right. …Kathryn." Suddenly, Kathryn is behind them with a basket.

"I know it's outside of visiting hours, but, uh, I needed to see you. I made some cranberry muffins. They used to be your favourite." She tells him. Mary Margaret leaves the two alone.

* * *

Emma and Hope are talking with Jacinda at Granny's Diner. Jacinda's car is being dropped off by a tow truck."So, this boyfriend of hers. You don't think he was involved in her disappearance?" Emma asks her. "Uh, that would mean he was involved with her at all, which he isn't. He left her in the lurch, right after they found out they were expecting. Hasn't spoken to her since. Like I said-" Before she finishes her sentence, her car is dropped abruptly and the slipper charm hanging on her mirror almost breaks. She yells at the tower then goes back to Emma and Hope.

"I don't know what you've heard, but it's wrong. Everyone thinks she's not ready to have this kid, but she's trying. Taking night classes, trying to better herself… Trying to get her life together. Can you understand that?" She tells them. She also tells them to talk to her ex, Beaux Prince, who lives with his mother. Emma drives to his house. Emma tells Hope that now that she accepts the job offer, she will be the one that will knock on the door and asks the questions. Hope understood.

Hope gets out of the cop car and goes and knocks on Beaux's door. At the same time, Beaux's mother is pulling up the driveway. Hope tells Beaux that Zadie is missing and she needs his help to find her. Beaux's mother comes out and tells Hope that she is not going to let her son ruin his life, and that she made a deal with Zadie that she would give up her child. She tells Hope that she found someone who will pay her very well for the baby. Hope realizes it is Mr. Gold who has bought the baby.

Hope returns to the cop car and tells Emma what they told her. "If Ashley wants to have this baby, she should have it. Anyone who wants to be a mother, should damn well be allowed to be one." Hope says to Emma. "I know you've been in this city for 2 days, but let me tell you something about , You can't double-cross Gold. No one's ever broken a deal with him. In this curse, the cursed 'remembers' the deals they made to Gold that are still intact or active But, to those not cursed he's been dead for years. Anna owns that pawnshop now." Hope tells Emma that Anna told her what Rumple said to her about the dead coming back. "Anna is not like Gold or Rumple." Hope says. "I read the stories about him."

Emma and Hope head to the restaurant to see Jacinda, and Hope is upset, because Jacinda did not tell her that Zaide sold the baby. Hope realizes that Jacinda gave Zadie her car. Hope asks Jacinda to tell her where Zadie is so that she does not have to deal with the new pawnshop owner alone. Jacinda tells her that Zadie left half an hour ago for New Orleans, because she believes that she can disappear there. Emma and Hope are driving, when they see Jacinda's car crashed and deserted at the town line. They hear screaming and find Zadie on the grassy side of the road, she tells them that the baby is coming.

Emma and Hope help Zadie into the car and drive back to the hospital. Zadie is distressed and frightened that "the other Gold" is going to take her child. "Nope. If you want to give this kid its best chance, it's going to be with someone who's ready, so know what that means. Your whole life is going to change and once you decide that it's yours, this 'running away' can't happen. You have to grow up and you can't ever leave. Understand?" Hope says to Zadie, Emma smiles at Hope, remembering that she once said those words to someone else in the same situation.

Hours later, Hope and Emma are at the hospital. Anna comes in and sits with them. "I think that you shouldn't be here." Emma tells her. "I know, I'm here to tell Zadie that I am not Gold and I will not get her baby." Anna says. The nurse comes to tell Emma that the baby is born, and the new baby girl and mother are doing fine. Emma and Hope enter Zadie's room. She's holding the baby. "What's her name?" Hope asks her. "Evangeline." Zadie says. "Joan was outside." Hope tells Zadie, and she tells Zadie that the woman she attacked was Joan. Joan or Anna comes inside and tells Zadie that she will not take her baby because she is not like Gold and she deserves to be happy. Zadie thanks her.

Beaux shows up at the hospital to see Zadie and the baby and tells her he is back and he is sorry that he should have never left her. He brought a present for the baby, a pair of slippers and Zadie tells him "they're perfect".

* * *

David and Kathryn are standing outside of their house. There is a little sign that says 'The Nolans' on the lawn. "You know, you had the same look on your face before we bought it, too. You couldn't see past the ugly windmill on the lawn and said you'd never buy an old lady house. Do you remember what made you change your mind?" She says to him. They go in the house and sees everyone is waiting inside for him at a surprise "Welcome Home" party. As David works through the crowd of guests, he does not remember anyone except for people he has met since waking up from his coma. David's doctor, Dr. Whale, is also at the party.

Regina and Kathryn are in the kitchen, Kathryn is upset. "You should go out there. There's plenty of food. Go. Be with your husband." Regina tells her. "I lost him once, now I have him back. But it's like I still don't have him back. You have no idea how that feels." Kathryn says to her. Regina tells her that she shares a similar experience of losing a lover, who is now dead. "What was his name?" Kathryn asks her. "His name was Robin." Regina says. Regina consoles Kathryn by saying that she is lucky; David is still alive, and they will have another chance to reconcile. Regina tells her to go back to her husband at the party. However, when Kathryn goes back to the party and looks for David, he has already left.

David walks over to Mary Margaret 's house as she attempts to hang a bird feeder in a tree and asks her why she did not come back to the hospital (as a volunteer), suspecting he was the reason she resigned from the hospital. Mary Margaret reminds him that he is married, but David tells her that it is her he is choosing, and not his wife Kathryn. Mary Margaret tells him to go back to his house and he does.

David is in his living room. He has a box of pictures in front of him and is looking through them. Kathryn enters and sits next to David on the couch. "You look different. Your hair – it's longer. You used to always have a buzz cut. You used to complain that long hair was itchy and hard to take care of." Kathryn says to him." I guess it grew while I was in there." He says to her. His wife tries to convince him to go to bed with her, but David asks her if they can sit and talk some more. They share a kiss, but David pulls her away and tells her it is not right.

The next day, Mary Margaret is at the diner, and Dr. Whale shows up and asks if she quit the volunteer position at the hospital because of him. Dr. Whale leaves just as Regina shows up to talk to Mary Margaret about David. She tells Mary Margaret that she and David do not belong together. Regina tells Mary Margaret that David has left his wife, that she should stay away because he is in a fragile state, and that she is close to destroying many lives. Regina then goes to her booth and several minutes, Anna joins her. "Did you have to say that to her?" She asks Regina. "I did." Anna asks her if Regina can tell her who has made deals to Gold so she can break the deal. "Sorry, but even if the Dark One is semi-dead, breaking deals is not what he does. You were allowed to break his deal with Zadie because Emma made another deal to him and she was allowed to keep her daughter. in this curse years ago." Regina explains. They see Mary Margaret leave the diner.

Mary Margaret is opening letters with a letter opener in her classroom. David stands at the door. "Careful – looks sharp." He says, Mary Margaret looks at him, she is upset that he left his wife. He tells Mary Margaret that his wife Kathryn needs someone who feels for her the way he feels for Mary Margaret. David tells her he wants her. He asks Mary Margaret to meet him at the toll bridge, where she found him, at 8 p.m.

At the sheriff's station, James is sitting at his desk in the station. Emma enters with a box of donuts. She asks him to work that night in her place. She tells him that she is going to volunteer at the Storybrooke Pet Shelter and needs to feed the dogs for the shelter's supervisor who is sick. "You think you can do that?" Emma asks him. James nods. "Promise me you won't go to the Rabbit Hole and drink all night long." Emma says to him. James promises that he won't.

Meanwhile, David is walking down the main street of Storybrooke, he has a map in his hands. He runs into Regina. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you. I was just heading home from work and I saw you. Are you lost?" She asks him. He tells her that he is looking for the toll bridge. Regina asks why he is looking for the bridge, he tells her that he is looking for someone. She realizes who he is looking for and says "So you made your choice." He tells her that he cannot change his feelings. Regina gives him instructions to the toll bridge and wishes him luck.

David arrives at Mr. Gold's pawn shop. He looks around, but realizes that there isn't a fork in the road. David opens the door to the pawn shop and yells in. He enters the pawn shop and closes the door. David looks around the pawn shop. He comes to a glass unicorn mobile. He goes to touch it, when "Joan" speaks up. "Charming. The mobile. Isn't it charming? Exquisitely designed, masterly crafted… I can get it down, if you like." She says to him. "No, no. I mean, it's… It's very nice, but actually, I'm looking for the Toll Bridge. The Mayor said there was a fork in the road by your shop, but-" Before he could finish his sentence, Anna tells him, " It seems Miss Mills has lead you astray." Anna gives him the correct directions, but on his way out, David sees a windmill, and he asks Mr. Gold where he got replies that it has been gathering dust forever. David realizes that this is the windmill Kathryn told him about which used to belong to them, and that suddenly he remembers everything. David leaves and Anna takes out a piece of paper from her pantsuit pocket revealing the lines that she should say written by Gold.

David shows up at the toll bridge, and Mary Margaret is waiting, but David tells her that he has remembered everything. Mary Margaret asks if he loves his wife, and he says he does not know, although he knows he did have feelings for her once, and he has to honor his marriage vows. He tells Mary Margaret that he has intense feelings for her, but he is going back to his wife, because it is the right thing to do. Mary Margaret is hurt and upset, and tells David the right thing to do was to not lead her on. She leaves the bridge hurriedly in disappointment and tears.

Meanwhile, James is driving around Storybrooke doing his night patrol, he then makes a detour to the Rabbit Hole. He gets in the bar and he goes to the bartender and asks for a drink. He stays in the bar for about 4 hours. He continues to drink, then a man sits by him and asks the bartender for a drink. The man looks at the deputy. "I know when someone lost someone they love." He tells James. "Please leave me alone, mate." He says to him. "You need a drinking mate, mate. Agree and maybe I'll leave you alone." He says. "Tell me your name and I will agree." He demanded. "The name's Liam." He says. James tells him that he can stay and drink with him. James tells Liam that years ago, he lost the woman he loves because a crocodile mauled her to death and he tried to move on but could not and he resorted to drinking. Liam says. James's phone drops on the floor and as he picks it up, Liam takes out two bottles from his pocket and pours the contents of the bottles in James's drink. "People move on, some don't. Maybe you are one of those people that can." James takes a drink from his drink.

"I can't move on, mate. I don't know how." James says to Liam. "You can, you'll find another woman out there." He says, Liam sees that as James chats with him, he starts to faint and Liam catches his fall. Liam carries James to the cop car and drives him home. He puts him back in bed and leaves. When Liam leaves the house, he stops and turns around, and he sees Emma. "You followed him." Emma tells him that this was the first time she followed James and thought he stopped drinking. She asks Liam what he put in the drink. Liam tells her that he won't remember their meeting him in the bar, but will remember their conversation. He tells Emma that she needs to make James fall in love with her. Emma tells Liam that James needs to move on first. "He did." Liam said. "The other bottle was a potion that can heal your broken heart."

David rings the doorbell and his wife Kathryn answers the door, and he tells her that he remembers everything. He admits that he knows that they were not at a good place when he got hurt. He tells her that he remembers the windmill which he hated, and how it triggered his "memory" in Mr. Gold's shop. He tells her they have work to do on their relationship and it will take time, but he wants to see what happens.

Mary Margaret is sitting alone in Granny's Diner. She is fiddling with her ring. Dr. Whale enters the diner and sits down next to her. "Don't feel like talking." She tells him. After a bit of prodding, Mary Margaret reluctantly asks him if he ever went into a situation which he knew would have a negative outcome, does it anyways, and regrets said outcome. Quickly, Dr. Whale says no, prompting Mary Margaret to ask how he can do that. He replies that he refused to do what is expected, because it keeps life "interesting". He then offers to buy her a drink, to which she replies "You can buy me two."

At the pawnshop, Anna is at the back of the shop with Arthur, he gives her a bottle filled with green fluid. "Keep this out of the hands of any person. Do you understand, Princess?" Anna nodded. "The venom inside this bottle is a deadly substance found in the venom-injecting fangs of the Agrabahn viper. A single bite leads to dark blotches on the body and a quick death. There is no antidote. The venom can be extracted from the snake's fangs and stored. A few drops causes dark splotches on the body while the victim suffers a slow and painful death. They will not succumb to the poison before it reaches their heart. An entire bottle causes immediate death and the body disappears in a cloud of green smoke." Arthur explains. He gives it to Anna. He asks where she will put the bottle. She tells him that she will put the bottle in the mansion that was once her home. "Why?" Arthur asks her. "Who would go to an abandoned mansion on a hill?"


	4. Chapter 4

James is playing darts at Granny's diner. He throws two darts and hits the deer both times. Ruby is waiting tables and Jade is sitting in one of the booths. Graham throws another dart and hits the deer again. Emma enters through another door. "Emma! What can I get you?" Ruby asks her. Emma says nothing and walks towards the diner's exit. James throws a dart in her direction, which lands right next to her head. "What the hell? You could've hit me!" She tells him. "I need to talk to you... in private." James leaves the diner and Emma follows him outside. James confesses to Emma that he did actually went to the Rabbit Hole to drink. Emma pretends to act surprise and leaves. But James stops her. James kisses Emma. As soon as he does, he has a flashback to his life in Storybrooke. "Did you see that?" He asks her. "How much have you been drinking? That was way over the line." She asks him. "Listen to me, James. You are drunk and full of regret. I get it. But whatever it is you are looking to feel, I can tell you one thing – you're not getting it with me." She says to him. Emma walks across the street, smiling and leaves James alone.

That night, James is on the main street. He walks up to his squad car with his keys in hand, but drops them. When he kneels down to pick them up, there is a crocodile with two differently coloured eyes in front of him. The crocodile crawls off and into the woods. He walks through the woods, searching for the crocodile. He hears a noise in the bushes, but it turns out to be "Joan". She is wearing an apron, boots and has a shovel, she tells him that she is planting flowers.

"Good morning, Sheriff. Sorry if I startled you." She says to him. "Right. Sorry, I… I thought you were a crocodile." He says to her. "Do I have rough skin?" She asks. "You know, to the best of my knowledge, Sheriff, there are no crocodiles in Storybrooke. Not the literal kind, anyway. Why are you looking?" She points out to him. James explains to "Joan" that he saw one in his dreams and one for real. "You know, Sheriff, they say that dreams… Dreams are memories. Memories of another life." She suggests.

James is still searching for the crocodile in the woods. He, again, hears growling in the distance. Eventually, he finds the crocodile in a clearing. The crocodiles starts to crawl away and James whistles and the reptile stops. It turns around and approaches him. When James pets the reptile , he has another flashback to his life in Fairy Tale World. He sees Emma, a dagger, and a ship. When he comes back to the present, the crocodile is gone. He heads to Emma's house. Emma is surprised to see James in the middle of the night. "You should be home." She tells him.

"Do you believe in other lives?" James asks Emma. Emma wanted to say yes, but in order for the curse to be broken, she said no. She then leans over and puts her hand on James's forehead. "Ah! You are burning up. Go home and get some rest. I think you'll feel much better after you've had some sleep." Emma says to him. James leaves her house

Two days later, Emma is waiting outside James' house. When James comes out, she confronts him. "Hey. Hear you're having a rough day." She tells him and tell him that he is not fine. "I just need to follow the crocodile, Emma." James said. He explains that he needs to follow the crocodile so he can find answers to who he really is. He tells Emma that he was once a pirate, he lost his hand because a crocodile took his hand and he replaced his lost hand with a hook. Emma suddenly stares at something behind James. Behind them, is the crocodile with the two differently coloured eyes. It crawls away and the two of them follow it. Emma and James follow the crocodile to the Storybrooke docks and see the reptile get on a ship and they follow it. The crocodile is gone once they got on the ship.

Emma sees James looking for something on the ship. He comes across a locked door and tries to open the doors of the room, but they're locked. He kicks open one of the doors and they both enter. He searches the room and sees a safe. He tries to open it. "What is it?" Emma asks him, he tells her that his hook is in the safe. "James, come on! You really think that your "hook" is in there and you believe that you're the pirate from Peter Pan?" Emma asks him. He nods. Emma sighs and tells him that she can open the safe. She takes out a paper clip and unlocks the door. There is nothing inside the safe. "No, it has to be here, it has toQ" James yells. Emma sees a bottle on a table and hides it under her shirt, Emma tries to calm him down. James looks at her.

James walks over to Emma. They kiss and he has another flashback to his life in Fairy Tale World. He sees the crocodile but it is a man he doesn't know, the fight at a deserted lake, the Evil Queen when they first met, Emma, the dagger, the hook, the ship, a wedding, a baby named Hope. When he comes back to the present, he staggers backwards. "Are you okay?" Emma asks him and he tells her that he remembers who he is, then Emma hits him with a bottle making him fall to the floor. "You can come out now." Emma says. Anna comes out of the shadowy corner and looks at the fallen sheriff. "Is he okay?" She asks Emma. Emma nodded. She asks her where the hook is, Anna shows her the hook in a ziplocked bag. Emma then asks Anna to help her carry James to his house.

Anna and Emma takes James back to his house. They put him on his bed. "Do you have the potion?" Emma asks Anna. Anna nodded, she gives the sheriff the potion that will make James fall back asleep. She tells Anna to keep an eye on him when she leaves and goes to the kitchen and gets a glass of water, She pours half of the the potion into the water and then she gets a bottle of rum from his fridge and pours the rest of the potion and returns to his bedroom and places the drinks on his nightstand. She sees James starting to wake up and tells Anna to go back to the pawnshop. James wakes up and the first thing he sees is Emma. "I remember." He says to her. "I came here to find you because you didn't show up at the station, you were supposed to come there at 5 am. I'm glad you remember that you had to wake up." Emma says to him. "I remember, my name is Killian Jones, I married you, we have a daughter named Hope, we are cursed." He tells her. "Swan, please believe me. I know that somewhere inside you, you know I'm telling the truth." James pleaded her. Emma grabs the glass of water and gives it to him. "Here, it looks like you haven't had water for years." James takes the glass and drinks it as Emma lies to him that she will go to the bathroom and she leaves his house. The potion takes effect on the deputy as Killian Jones fell asleep and James Hook came back.

Emma arrives at Granny's and sits with Regina in a booth. She tells Regina about what she had been through. "You didn't want to do it, did you?" Regina asked her. "I didn't want to, but do I want this curse to be broken, I had to." She says. Regina tells her that she found a cursed Roland who is an orphan and is stealing around town. She tells Emma that she wanted to find him a family, but what she didn't know is that Robin Hood was one of the deceased that were brought back and she gave Roland to him. They made out and she told him that she missed him.

Then, Mary Margaret arrives at Granny's Diner. She sits at one of the tables, takes out a book, and fixes her hair in a spoon's reflection. 15 minutes later, David enters the diner and walks up to the counter. Ruby serves him two coffees. David takes the coffees and notices Mary Margaret sitting behind him. Regina and Emma watch them chat. "Shouldn't you be at the back room?" Regina asks her. "She's not the one I'm gonna confront." Emma says. David leaves. She sees him meet Kathryn at their car, where he gives her the coffee and a kiss on the cheek. Several minutes later, Mary Margaret leaves, then seconds later, Regina leaves the diner and Anna comes in and sits with Emma, 3 minutes later, Chris and Liz comes in and gets coffee from Granny. Anna watch as they leave the diner.

"So, now you're a stalker?" Emma asks her. "No, not really… Maybe a little bit. I mean, it's not like I'm following them. I just know that they spend their day, gets coffee, "Chris" takes her to the ice cream store, then drives to the gym to start work at seven thirty and then he's home around four. They go iceskating on weekends." Anna tells Emma. Emma suggest she should become friends with them, Anna is hesitant because of what Elsa is now, Emma tells her not to worry because Princess Anna of Arendelle is known for meeting new people and becoming friends with them. "Don't be Joan Summers, be the Princess of Arendelle." Emma says to her.

Anna goes over to the ice cream store and goes inside, she sees Chris and Liz in the shop. "Hey... I'm sorry, I didn't ask for your name." Chris says to her. "My name's Joan. But, my family and friends call me another name." She tells them. "What flavor would you like Joan?" Liz asks her. She tells Liz that she didn't come here for ice cream, she turned to Chris, "You told me to come to you when I needed help to get around town." She says to him. "Is there an ice skating rink in this city. Chris looked at Liz and smiled and turn to Anna. "You an ice skating lover?" Liz asks her. Anna nodded.

"I love to ice skate when I was a little girl." Anna tells them. Chris turns to Liz, "Looks like we are going ice skating with our new friend." Chris said to her. "You have a car to get there?" Chris asks her. Anna tells them that she has a motorcycle. "Meet us at Snow Road at 8 pm tomorrow and we'll go iceskating." Chris says. "Do you two ice skate everyday?" Anna asks them. Liz tells her that they go ice skating only on Thursdays. As Anna was about to leave the store, Liz stops her. "Where do you spend your time?" She asks Anna. "Sometimes Granny's, sometimes the pawnshop that my Uncle Gold gave to me to own." She tells her. "Do you... wanna hang out sometimes, maybe at my house." Liz asks her. Chris smiles at her, this was the first time he's seen Liz open up to others. "Sure." Anna says, then she goes out of the shop. Anna smiles once she is outside.

* * *

Mary Margaret is shopping for supplies for an impending storm when she bumps into Kathryn Nolan, who drops a pregnancy test. She apologizes to Kathryn and tells her that she wasn't looking. Mary Margaret picks up a pregnancy test. She hands it to Kathryn. "Thank you." Kathryn says. After Kathryn walks away, Regina appears and tells Mary Margaret that it is the couple's personal business and to keep it quiet.

Hours later, Mary Margaret is walking along a gravel road through the forest. She hears a cooing noise coming from the slope on the edge of the road. She slides down the incline and finds a dove trapped in some plastic netting. She frees the dove and takes it with her to the animal shelter. The vet examines the bird. "Well, the good news is, no broken bones. She was just a little dehydrated, but I got her some fluids and she should be just fine, this is a north Atlantic dove. It's a migratory species. Very unique among American doves. They tend to form strong, monogamous bonds." He says to Mary Margaret, who figures out that if she doesn't get her back to her flock, she will be alone forever. The vet tells her the alternative is to put her in a cage so it will heal. The vet leaves. Mary Margaret takes the dove's cage and goes to leave. David offers to help Mary Margaret return the dove but she declines.

Mary Margaret is driving along the same gravel road where she found the dove. She has the dove in its cage on the seat next to her. Thunder can be heard in the distance. Mary Margaret continues along the gravel road, until she comes to a 'Road Closed' sign. She takes the dove's cage and gets out of the car. She then sets out on foot along the road. The storm can still be heard in the distance. Mary Margaret looks over the edge of the road. She puts down the dove's cage and goes closer to the slope. Thunder clashes and she ends up falling down the incline and over the side of a cliff. She grabs onto a branch and dangles over the river below. She attempts to crawl up, but ends up falling farther down. Suddenly, David appears and extends his hand to Mary Margaret.

She grabs his hand and pulls Mary Margaret to safety. She walks up the incline and back towards where she left the dove. David follows her. Rainfall starts as they find the dove's cage. "Mary Margaret, it's not safe. We need to get out of here. Come on!" David says to her. Mary Margaret agrees and the two of them run to find shelter. He points to a cabin in the woods. They run to the front door and look in the window, the cabin is empty. David kicks in the door and the two of them rush into the cabin. David gets a fire going in the fireplace. He puts a blanket over Mary Margaret's shoulders, but she shrugs it off.

"Hey, I'm just… I'm just trying to help. What's going on with you today?" David asks her.

"What's going on? 'What's going on' is I still have feelings for you. Why do you think I go to Granny's every morning at seven fifteen? It's to see you. I don't even know why, because it just makes me miserable. Because every time I see you, it just reminds me that you chose Kathryn instead of me. And that's why I didn't want you to come to the woods with me. Because being around you is too… It's too painful." Mary Margaret says to him. David replies that he goes to Granny's to see her. They nearly kiss but Mary Margaret stops it because she knows about Kathryn's pregnancy test. David explains that his feelings for Kathryn are memories but his feelings for Mary Margaret are real. She says they have to forget each other. The next day Mary Margaret and David try to avoid seeing each other by going to Granny's at 7:45. David tells her that Kathryn is not pregnant. Ultimately, they realize they cannot stay apart, and they kiss. Regina and Emma watches them from a distance, smiling.

Hours later, Anna drove her motorcycle to Snow Road to meet up with Chris and Liz. Minutes later, both of them came out of their houses and they saw Joan. "You ready to ice skate?" Chris asks her. "I was born ready." Anna says. Chris tells her to follow him. He asks Liz where she who she wants to ride with. She chooses to ride with "Joan". Anna laughs. "Just so you know, you're my first cycle passenger." Anna tells her. "Do you trust me?" Anna asks her. "Name one reason why I shouldn't." Liz tells her. Anna gives her a helmet. Chris tells "Joan" to follow him. He starts to drive off and Anna follows him. She follows him to a ice skating rink on Castle Hill where the rink is.

The rink was huge, and people from the city were coming to the rink and have some fun. The trio got of their vehicles and walks to the entrance of the rink. As they got closer, the rink became bigger. "That is a big rink, I might cry." Anna says, taking in the sight of the rink. "Go ahead, we won't judge." Chris says. They enter the rink and wore their gloves and jackets since the rink was cold inside. The trio got their ice skating shoes and got on the ice. Anna manages to find her balance and she did. She sees Chris looking at her and he asks how long has it been since she ice skated. "Long time." She tells him. As they ice skated, Anna could see that even though they are cursed, she could see that Elsa and Kristoff are still in there.

Anna noticed Liz getting back on the ice and started skating toward her so they could skate together. As they got closer, Anna slipped and fell on Liz. "Liz look out!" Anna said before they collided and fell to the ground. "Ow!" Regina said as she hit the ice. "Are you okay?!" Anna asked in a panicked voice, afraid she had hurt Liz. "Yeah, I'm okay." Liz said looking at the others around them. "We should probably get up before more people fall on us." She says. Anna agrees. She got on her feet and held out her hand for Liz and she stood up and continued to ice skate.

Hours later, the rink was about to close and the trio got out of the ice and returned the skates and headed to the car and motorcycle and they drove back to Snow Road. Chris says goodnight to "Joan" and hopes that he gets to see her again. Liz gets off the motorcycle and enters the house. But she stops before she enters her house. She turns around to talk to "Joan"

"You said that that your name is Joan, but your family and friends call you another name. What do they call you?" Liz asks her. "They call me Anna." She says to her. you have a place to sleep, Anna?" Liz asks Anna. Anna tells Liz that she is staying at Granny's Bed and Breakfast. "Do you like staying there?" Liz asks her. Anna nodded. "You know, if things get cramped, I do have a spare room." Liz tells her. "Thanks. I'm not really the roommate type. It's just not my thing. I do better on my own." Anna says to her. Both bid goodnight and Anna drives back to her room and Liz goes in her house. Hours later, Liz is making hot chocolate with ice and watching TV when there's a knock on the door. She opens the door and on the other side is Anna, Liz smiles at the sight of her. "Sorry to bother you so late. Is that spare room still available?" Anna asks her. She nods and lets Anna in.


	5. Chapter 5

Emma and David are sitting in Emma's office at the station. She hands him a mug of tea. "David. I think you need to start worrying about yourself a little bit more here. Your wife is missing. You are in love with another woman. There's this… Unexplained phone call." Emma tells him. After a few questions, she lets him go, as there is not enough evidence to press charges. At Granny's Diner, Ruby is talking to Anna, eating breakfast while Liz, who took a day off, is looking over the files, and Anna tells Ruby about traveling the world when Granny calls her over and tells her to stop chatting to them and do the diner's paperwork. The two argue, and Ruby walks out, stating she quits.

Liz then looks at one file that got her attention. "You said that your sister was blonde right?" Anna nodded. She hand Anna the file. Anna looks at the picture. To her, the woman in the picture was The Snow Queen or Ingrid, but to Liz, it is someone she doesn't know. Anna reads the file of Sarah Fisher.

"The file says that she came here 27 years ago, and your sister left 27 years ago as well." Liz points to the section that says DOB or Date of Birth. "You told me that you and your sister are 5 years apart and it looks like she's 5 years older than you." Liz points out. Anna asks where this woman lives. "She lives 2 blocks from me." Liz says, they exchanged glances and nodded. They both got out of Granny's and got on the motorcycle and drove to the woman's house.

Mary Margaret runs to catch up with Emma on the street. The two of them walk together. She asks her if David is okay. Emma tells her friend that he is a little shaken up and at home, they run into Ruby talking to Dr. Whale. She has decided to leave town immediately, but they persuade her to come to their apartment for the time being so that she can figure things out.

Mary Margaret drives her car along the road out of Storybrooke and pulls over just before she reaches the sign. She gets out and goes into the woods. A short ways into the woods, she hears a rustling sound. Suddenly, David appears through the brush. She runs into David who was looking for Kathryn. David just keeps saying repeatedly that he's looking for his wife, David begins to wander back into the woods. She yells to him, but he doesn't seem to hear her.

* * *

Anna and Liz made it to the woman's house. "Is this it?" Anna asked Liz who responded with a nod. "I hope you're right about this." Anna tells her. Liz explains to Anna that she feels that she is always right about something. The duo walks to the door and Liz knocks on the door. A woman with blonde hair answers the door. "Uh... hello?" She greets them. "Hi, are you Sarah Fisher?" Liz asks her. The woman nodded. Liz tells the woman that Anna is her sister and Sarah denies that she is. Anna jumps in, "Are you sure that your not my sister." Sarah tells her that she is not her sister a million times. She then gives Sarah her file. "This file says that you came here 27 years ago. My sister left me 27 years ago..." Before she could finish what she was saying, Sarah yelled at them.

"Look, I told you a million times, I am not your sister, you and I don't look anything alike. I lived in this town my whole life. Leave me alone and go bother someone else." She tells them. Anna pretended to be shocked and she tells Liz that they should leave. They do and Sarah makes another remark, "I'm beginning to think that you're the reason why your sister left you, sweetie, you're annoying and you're obsessed with her." Anna sees something snapped in Liz and her head snapped back at looked at the woman. Liz was about to insult the woman until Anna stopped her. Anna leads Liz back to the motorcycle. Anna looks back at "Sarah" and gives her a smile and a wink, the other woman winks back at her.

Anna had ushered Liz back home and forced her friend to take a hot shower to try and relieve herself of the stress and heartbreak that resulted from that confrontation. The warm water did her some good, relaxing her muscles and clearing her head from the draining haze that came from arguing. Chris came a few minutes later, Anna explained what had happened. Chris tells Anna that Liz has another side. He explained that Liz was good with words and better at outsmarting people by fighting them and Anna did a good job of preventing her from doing that. Chris left.

Anna waited for Liz to get out of the shower. She took out a walkie talkie out of her bag and started to talk to it. "Ingrid, you there?" Anna asked. A female voice came through. "Yes." The voice says. "Is she still upset?" She asks her. "Yeah, she's so upset that I forced her to take a shower." Anna says. They talked about how their plan worked. Then, Liz got out of the shower.

"You still upset?" Anna wondered. Liz was so upset that she started to rant. Anna liked this cursed Elsa and her ranting. Anna sat at the kitchen table and braided her hair, watching as Liz paced the floor and rambled on about how she would get back at the woman for getting away with everything she said to them.

To get her mind off of what happened, Anna suggested they should make soup. Minutes later, as their dinner simmered, they spent the next few hours chatting away, Anna tells Liz about where her parents are from. They listened to their favorite songs on the radio while Anna showed Liz how to put her hair into a French braid, instead of two pigtails. For a few minutes, they could have been passed off as twins, though Liz shook it out and braided her hair into a braid, preferring the individualism and the separation of weight on her head.

When the stew was finally ready, they sat down for a long meal, taking their time to enjoy the homemade soup and letting their taste buds get lost in the warm savory flavors. Despite eating their fill, they had enough portions to last them for another three nights. They cleaned up, and as per usual, Liz made two mugs of hot chocolate and give one to Anna. Anna could see that Liz was still upset, so she went to go sit out on the front porch alone so Liz could release her anger inside.

Liz joined her right away, they had a lot of fun today, more fun than they've had in a long while, but Liz hadn't forgotten what happened hours earlier. Anna could tell that she had been thinking about it all day, and pretended that she was doing the same thing. The wound was still fresh. Not that Anna minded the company so early, if anything it only made her happier. They sat quietly, watching the streets, faces aglow in the streetlights as they watched people walk about, bar-hopping or simply finishing their business before heading home for the night.

* * *

At the station, Hope is searching the internet for a job for Ruby. Ruby is sitting next to him, while the phone on the desk continuously rings. Hope asks her about a possible job of delivering things to others as a courier using a basket. Ruby then answers the phone and takes messages, and an impressed Emma asks her to be her assistant. Mary Margaret tells Emma about her strange encounter with David. Ruby goes to Granny's to pick up lunch, and she tells her about her new job. Granny tells Ruby that she is doing the same job she was doing before.

Emma takes Ruby out with her to investigate the place where Kathryn disappeared into the woods. They are following tracks when Ruby is able to hear David. They find him unconscious. When he revives, he has no recollection of anything that has happened since the previous night. At the hospital, Dr. Whale says David is having the same experience he had when he came out of his coma. He says he can refer him to Dr. Hopper for psychological assistance. David fears that this episode of memory loss occurred during his last moment with Kathryn. Still listed as David's emergency contact, Regina arrives and scolds Emma to go look for Kathryn. Ruby goes to the toll bridge upon Emma's instruction to see if she can find anything. She finds a box buried under a wooden plank and screams upon opening it.

Minutes later, Ruby shows Emma the contents of the box. She is still in shock by her discovery and questions being cut out for police work, and Emma, amazed with Ruby's tracking skills, comforts her. Ruby goes back to the diner, she asks Granny if her arm is hurting her. Granny responds by saying yes as it does on every full moon. Ruby tells Granny that she wants to come back.

"Here's the thing – um… You were talking about having me do all this stuff, and I…wasn't sure. I-I said that, you wanted me to turn into you, but… What I meant was, I don't know how to be you. You're a tough act to follow. And then you wanted me to take on all this extra responsibility, and I… Guess I just got scared. I can do it anyway. I sort of found someone in myself that was more than I expected. Emma was my lemur. Did that, found out I could do that, and also that I don't want to. I don't want a job where a good day means ruining someone's life. I want to do something that makes me happy. Somewhere I love." Ruby explains. Granny says that she was so insistent on Ruby learning to run the diner, because she wants Ruby to own the place when she retires. She says that Ruby loves it as she does, and the two hug.

Mary Margaret checks on David at his workplace, and Emma shows up. She tells them about the box and that there was a human heart inside it. There are fingerprints on the box. David wants to know if he is being arrested, but Emma says that they are not David's fingerprints; they belong to Mary Margaret.

* * *

Emma is taking Mary Margaret's mugshot at the station, she tells Mary Margaret to turn to the right. Mary Margaret tells her friend that she did not kill Kathryn. _I'm sorry, Mom. But we had to do this if we want the curse to break._ Emma thought to herself.

"Of course you didn't. But, while I am your friend, I am also the Sheriff. And I have to go where the evidence leads." Emma tells her. "

If I don't book you, with all this evidence, it's going to look like favouritism. And then, Regina will have cause and she will fire me. And then, you know what she'll do? She'll bring in someone who will railroad you. So, please – just try to be patient and trust me. We can't even move forward till we verify the heart belonged to Kathryn. And I am still waiting for the DNA test results. But, in the meantime, you need to bear with me. I have to ask you a few questions." Emma explains to her cursed mother.

Emma leads Mary Margaret into an interrogation room. Regina is already there, Emma explains that Regina is there as a third party person. Emma turns on the tape recorder.

"The heart was found buried near the old Toll Bridge. It had been cut out by what appears to be a hunting knife. Have you ever been to that bridge before?" Emma asks Mary Margaret as Regina watches on.

Mary Margaret is surprised when being shown the box that the heart was in. She admits to having seen the box before, since it is her jewelry box, but insists it must have been stolen. Regina assures Mary Margaret that she knows what she is going through. She knows what losing someone is like and how it can put someone in a "dark place". She tells Emma to to investigate the apartment for evidence of a robbery and she will continue to interrogate.

Emma goes to investigate Mary Margaret's apartment. She checks the locks of the door and windows. Lucy enters and surprises Emma.

"What are you doing here?" Emma asks her granddaughter.

"Helping you like my dad." Lucy tells her. Emma and Lucy look around Mary Margaret's room. After looking at the pictures on Mary Margaret's desk, Emma flops down on the bed. Suddenly, the heat noisily turns on. Searching for the source of the noise, Emma looks to the floor and sees a heating vent. She takes off the grate of the vent and sticks her hand in.

"Did you find something?" Emma pulls out a hunting knife wrapped in a cloth.

* * *

Hal is drinking a hot chocolate at Granny's Diner. Lucy enters and sits next to her cursed father at the counter. "You seem upset, why?" She asks him. "My childhood teacher is being blamed on a crime she didn't do, she didn't do it. Why can't anyone see that?" Hal asks.

"Because most people just see what's right in front of them. And I don't think you're going to find the answers you want at the bottom of that mug." Lucy tells him. Hal asks her where she should look.

"People told me that you were once an author and you wrote a book. I ordered that book and saw some similarities in that book and the situation here." Lucy explains. "You think that what happened to a character in a book that I wrote and published years ago is real?" Hal asks her.

"If you think its real, then it is real." Lucy tells him. Before she leaves the diner, she tells him, "Find that book and maybe you'll start to believe." She gives him a piece of paper that has her phone number. "Call me." She leaves the diner.

* * *

Regina is peeling an apple in her office, when David knocks at the door and lets himself in. He tells the mayor that Mary Margaret didn't do this type of crime and he can prove that she is innocent. Regina says that evil is not born, but made, and is not always easily recognized. David is skeptical that Mary Margaret knows anything about evil. He tells Regina about his blackouts, and his suspicions that he did these things, but Regina is dismissive of him.

"You're very sweet, David. But you're also wrong. Evil doesn't always look evil. Sometimes it's staring right at us, and we don't even realize it."

At the station, Emma is with Mary Margaret, who is locked in a cell. Emma tells Mary Margaret about the dagger and tells her to get a lawyer. Anna enters, telling Emma it is a good idea.

"Ms. Summers, what are you doing here?" Emma asks the pawnshop owner.

"Offering my legal services, I've been following the details of your case, Miss Blanchard. And I think you'd be well-advised to bring me on as your counsel." Anna tells them.

She sends Emma away to speak with her privately. Mary Margaret says that she is unable to pay her, but she dismisses it, declaring that she is helping her, because she is not like Mr. Gold and she knows that Mary Margaret is innocent.

David knocks on the door of Archie's office and Archie answers the door, David asks for his help.

"I've been having these blackouts… And I need to remember what happened during them. I think I might know something that can help Mary Margaret." He says to him. Minutes later, David is lying on the couch in a hypnotic state.

"Now, David, listen very closely. Can you hear me?" Archie asks him and David nods.

"Good. Okay, I want you to go back in your memory. Back to the last time you and Kathryn spoke. The last thing you remember. Tell me – where are you?" Archie asks him.

"In my bedroom, the night she left. I called her on her cell. She said she realized she needed to start a new life. Without me. She thought Mary Margaret and I should be together. She said she was hurt… But she wanted me to be happy." David tells Archie.

He has flashbacks of being in the woods with Snow White in the Enchanted Forest, he mistakes these for memories of Mary Margaret. He remembers Snow White trying to kill the Evil Queen and himself saying to her, "Don't kill her!" David rushes out of Archie's office, without telling what he saw.

* * *

At Hal's house, he searches through all his bookshelves finding the book he had written. He finds a book with a white cover that says "Once Upon A Time" He begins to read the book and he starts to become more and more surprised as he reads through the book.

He goes on his phone and calls someone. "Hello, you there. Can we talk. At Granny's. You're busy. Let's talk the day after tomorrow." He hangs up. He sat on his bed for a minute. Then he grabs a piece of paper and begins to write something on it.

* * *

Mary Margaret is lying on the bed in her cell, when David enters.

"Emma said we could have a few minutes alone. I wanted to tell you, that Dr. Hopper helped me remember what happened during my blackouts. I… I only, um, got pieces of the memory, but… We were in the woods, and I kept saying, 'don't do it'. Don't kill her. That's what I kept saying. Can you explain why I have that memory?" David asks her.

"Kathryn? You think you remember me wanting to kill Kathryn? David? Are you asking me if I had something to do with Kathryn's murder? " She asks him.

"The Sheriff found a heart in our spot. It was in your jewelry box. The weapon was found in your apartment. And I have these… These memories. So, yes, I'm asking." He says to her.

"When your phone records came back, when I found you wandering in the woods, when everyone thought you killed Kathryn, I stood by you. I never once doubted you. And, now that everything is pointing to me, you actually think I am capable of that kind of evil? Get. Out."

* * *

Still in her cell, Mary Margaret is making her bed. When she tucks in the sheets, something falls out and clinks on the ground. The object turns out to be one of Regina's skeleton keys. Mary Margaret tries the key in her cell door, and ends up being able to open it. When she hears Emma return, she quickly removes the key and shuts the door. Emma enters with a bag of food giving it to her telling her its breakfast.

"I know Ms. Summers doesn't want us to talk, but I thought you should hear this from me. The test results came back on the heart… And the DNA was a match for Kathryn. She's dead. I'm sorry – for a lot of things. But, now that we have proof of the death, we have enough evidence to move forward with a case against you. It's going to happen. You know I do believe you, right?" Emma tells her.

'All this evidence tells me one thing for certain – that you are being framed. And I think Regina's behind it." Emma says.

"Then why am I still in here? Why don't you confront her?" Mary Margaret asks Emma.

'If I don't do this right, things will end up worse for you. Every time I've gone up against Regina, she's seen it coming, and I've lost." Emma explains. Emma tells Mary Margaret that she has faith in her and she has to have faith in the sheriff.

* * *

Two days later, Emma is leaving Granny's Diner, when David calls out to her. The two of them talk as they walk to her car. David wants to ask about Mary Margaret. He tries to explain why he had questioned her innocence. He asks to see Mary Margaret, but Emma says that she does not want to see him.

At the station, Mary Margaret is sleeping in her cell. When she wakes up, she sees Regina watching her.

"What are you doing here? Where's Emma?" She questions her.

"She hasn't arrived yet. I just wanted to stop by to offer you a chance. A chance to spare yourself and this town the messiness of a trial. The chance to confess. The murder weapon was found in your apartment, your fingerprint was on the box containing Kathryn's heart… Shall I go on? Why not, for once, make it easier on everyone? Because confession or not, you're leaving Storybrooke." Regina says.

"And you like that. Why? Why do you take such pleasure in this? What did I ever do to you to make you hate me so much?" Mary Margaret asks. Regina leaves without saying a word to her.

* * *

Lucy is sitting at Granny's waiting for Hal. He sits down next to her and shows her the book.

"You found it." Lucy says impressed.

"You told me about the similarities between what happened in this city and the book are similar and I didn't believe you." He says to her. He tells her that he had made a list of the things he had read and what he had heard from the people in the city.

"I published this book so long ago, that I forgot all about it." He then tells Lucy about the similarites he read in the book and compares to the events that had occured in this city.

"Do you believe?" Lucy ask him.

"What?"

"Do you believe?" Lucy asks him again.

"I don't know." He replies.

"What about fairy tales? Do you believe in them?" She asks him.

"Fairy tales? I don't understand." He says.

"Do you trust me?" Lucy asks to which Henry replies that he does even though he just met her.

Lucy takes out a brown covered storybook with the same title of Hal's book.

"If you believe and if you believe in me, then take it." Lucy hands Hal the book. As soon as he takes it Henry remembers visiting Emma in Boston, both of them sitting together at his castle, Emma breaking the curse, using pixie dust to fly in Neverland, practice sword fighting with his father, leaving Storybrooke, becoming the author, meeting Cinderella and falling in love with her.

Hal snaps out of it and he smiles, remembering who he is. But, Lucy was not sitting in front of him anymore. She had left Granny's once Hal started to remember everything. He runs out of Granny's to look for Lucy and he shouts for her name. He notices writing on his hand telling him to pretend that you are still cursed until the curse is broken. The curse will be broken in six days.

* * *

Hours later, Emma and Anna discuss having Mary Margaret talk to the D.A. about the case. He says that the skeleton key is not sufficient proof of Regina being complicit. Anna says that her personality can help get the charges dropped, if she meets with the District Attorney. James drops off some flowers and says that he cannot find anything connecting Regina to the case: no damaging phone records nor evidence that she owed a hunting knife, but that he will keep looking. Mary Margaret agrees to being interviewed by the District Attorney, Albert Spencer, just as he arrives.

In the interview room, the D.A. talks about the case against her. He asks about the incident in the school when Kathryn slapped her, and he asks if she wanted Kathryn gone, since Kathryn was keeping her and David apart. Despite answering, "No," several times and Anna saying that she was done talking, Albert keeps pressing on. Mary Margaret snaps that she did want Kathryn gone, but is then horrified at having said that. Emma and Regina watch the interview outside. "How much do you want for this curse to break?" Regina asks Emma. "Badly that I keep waking up thinking it is."

David is sitting alone at Granny's when Regina comes in. She sits down next to him and he tells her that he is wanted to testify against Mary Margaret for the murder of Kathryn. David blames himself for what happened to Kathryn, but Regina reminds him that the car crash didn't kill her a person did. He wonders why Regina doesn't hate him, to which she claims that she is his friend. She then places her hand on top of his and says that she is here for him at anytime. He leaves and Regina thanks Sidney for letting her know David was there.

Mary Margaret is fixing up her bed in her cell when Emma enters. Emma tells her that Regina was one step ahead and the shovel was missing. Mary Margaret gets angry at Emma for this knowing that she could have run, but stayed because she trusted that Emma would be able to help her. Mary Margaret screams at Emma telling her to leave. Emma departs, but then, Mary Margaret hears footsteps and thinks it's Emma but it's Regina, much to her surprise.

_I'm sorry for putting you behind bars, Snow. _Regina thought to herself. She pretends to taunt her about her having to suffer. Mary Margaret tries to apologize for whatever it was that she did that Regina blames her for, but Regina refuses to accept her apology. She admits that she knows Mary Margaret did not kill Kathryn, but that she still deserves this anyway.

Hours later, Mary Margaret is taken away by police as Emma and Anna watch, they then head to Granny's. Suddenly, a scream is heard from behind the diner. Emma and Anna go to investigate. They see Ruby walking in the opposite direction.

'Ruby! What's going on?" Emma asks her.

"She… She… She's in the alley." Ruby tells her.

Emma goes around to the parking lot in the back of the diner. There is a body laying face down on the ground. Emma leans down to turn the body over, revealing a conscious and very alive Kathryn.


	6. Chapter 6

At the hospital, Kathryn is awake and is being assessed by Dr. whale. Emma enters.

"Emma. Come on in. Look who's awake." Dr. Whale says.

"Kathryn, hi. Listen, I don't want to take a lot of your time. But, do you remember what happened?" Emma asks her.

"I don't know much. Um, I was in a car accident, and…I remember the airbag going off. And the next thing I knew, I was in the dark, in some basement. I didn't see anyone, but there was food and water. And then, I guess I was drugged. And then, I woke up in a field at the edge of town, and I started walking. That was it." She tells her.

Emma tells Kathryn that everyone believed she was dead, because of the heart in Mary Margaret's jewelry box matching Kathryn's DNA. There is now an investigation as to who doctored the DNA results to frame Mary Margaret.

Hours later, David visits Kathryn and tries to kiss her forehead while she is sleeping, but instead startles her.

"Kathryn, I'm sorry. I'm sorry I lied to you. I'm sorry I cheated on you. I'm just… I'm sorry for all of this." David tells her.

"David, it's okay. You know, what we had… It wasn't it for you. Maybe for both of us. I can't blame you for just being the first one to see it." She says to David.

At Mary Margaret's apartment, most of the citizens of Storybrooke are gathered for Mary Margaret's welcome home party. Mary Margaret and Emma are at the punch bowl watching everyone. Mary Margaret leaves to serve drinks. Her grandson gives her a bell as a gift.

David shows up at the door, but Mary Margaret signals for Emma to turn him away. Emma tells David to walk Henry home. Lucy shows up and approaches Emma. She whispers to Emma telling her that her father is awake. "I told him to pretend that he's not awake." Lucy says to her.

David is waiting outside of a building. When Mary Margaret appears, he approaches her. She ignores him.

"Please wait. Look, I'll leave if you want. I… I just think we need to talk. I need to apologize." David tells her and she lets him talk.

"I didn't believe you. I didn't stand with you." He explains.

"You know, I will never forget that moment… The moment the world sort of blows you backwards, and the one person you thought would always be there to catch you… He isn't there." She says to him, hurt.

She believes there is something keeping them apart and does not want the bad moments to erase the good ones. David proclaims his love for her, but she says that his love is exactly what makes the whole situation so sad.

* * *

In Liz's house, the two best friends are in the living room, doing laundry. Liz couldn't forget about what the woman had said to her friend, that she almost took a step too far.

"About yesterday…" she started, unsure of how to proceed as she turned to her friends. She played with a corner of a green blanket, trying to find the words she wanted to say, but as usual, just wasn't able to find the proper way to say them.

"What were you going to do if you ran away?" Liz asks Anna.

She stared at the ceiling, breathing calmly while thinking back to her previous actions.

"I don't know what I would've done," Anna answered truthfully. "Maybe run away to the mountains and live there.

"I got so worked up and frustrated… I couldn't think and I felt like I was out of control; that everything was out of control." Liz opened her eyes and turned over to Anna with a sad look on her face.

"I'm sorry you had to see that other side of me."

"No, no, it's okay. I get it." Anna's smile was warm, filled with relief and gratitude. She reached the distance between their folder clothes and rested her hand on the clothing, clutching it with stiff fingers. "I'm glad that you got my back."

A pale hand stretched out and clasped her own, chilling her skin at the touch in just that familiar way.

"Me too."

The next day, It was snowing, white flakes drifted lazily in the breeze, each individual crystal floating and turning freely without a care or worry, spiraling to the ground at whatever repetitive speed they managed.

Liz woke up early, she didn't want to wake up Anna. When she got out of the house, the fresh, cold air played at her senses but she refused to let it bother her, she held up her left hand, catching snowflakes on the tips of her fingers as she made her way down the main street of town to the store. The flakes lingered long on her skin before they eventually melted away to nothing. Anna always told her that her skin was cold, but apparently it wasn't cold enough to keep a snowflake intact.

* * *

David is going to work, when he sees Regina looking under the hood of her car. The battery is dead, and she has groceries in the car, so he offers her a ride home in his truck. The two of them walk up the walkway of Regina's house.

When they get there, she suggests that he stay for supper, as she is making lasagna for herself and the sheriff. David agrees to stay. Regina smiles.

David thanks her for the support that she has shown him while Mary Margaret was incarcerated and she says that she has always felt a little responsible for him since she found him. He asks her to tell him the story because no one's ever told him the story.

"That's probably because I'm the only one who knows it. I was working late. It… It was a cold night like this. Must've been ten below. And on my drive home, I realized I left my phone at the office. I remember thinking just to forget about it and I didn't really need it. But… Something inside me told me to turn around and go back. You were on the side of the road, unconscious. So cold you felt like ice. The doctor said if I found you ten minutes later, it would've been too late. It's amazing, isn't it? If I hadn't forgotten my phone, I wouldn't have been on the road at that time."

Regina moves in to kiss him, but David backs away. David thanks her for dinner and leaves.

Her phone starts to ring.

"Hello."

It was Emma. She asks Regina if she is ready for tonight because it will be the night that Henry will be on a sleeping curse. Regina tells her friend that she is.

Liz got home from work, she plopped back into her seat at the kitchen table, she turned on the lamp and counted out the money she received. Normally she would have counted it out at the shop, but she was just so thankful that she had money she decided not to push her luck. She hears feet tapping from the porch and a key turning in the handle.

Anna enters and she sees Liz. She walks towards her andd she reached for the bag she brought in with her and pulled out a white box from it. "Here, I got you something. Chris told me something when he came to the pawnshop."

She opened the box, took out what was inside and set it on the table, moving the stacks of money so they wouldn't get in the way. As Liz stood there, face turning red in her usual flustered way, Anna took a small candle from one of the cabinets, stuck it in the middle of a mountain of bright blue frosting and lit it with the lighter.

"Happy Birthday, Liz."

The older girl stood in front of the glow rigidly with one hand clasped in the other, and though she tried to stop it, an infectious smirk raised from the corner of her lips as she gazed upon the large chocolate cupcake decorated with a greater amount of frosting. She giggled, eyeing her friend.

"Thank you Anna." Liz says to her friend. She stared at the candle and closed her eyes for a few moments, and blew out the candles.

The two friends ate some cake and chat. Anna got up and looked out the window and watch the snow raining on the ground.

Anna wanted to ask Liz a question, a question she couldn't wait to ask once the curse has been broken.

"Liz, do you know how to build a snowman?" Anna asked her.

"I do." Liz replies.

"Well then, do you wanna build a snowman?"

Something resonated within them at the question. Something familiar, important even, but they couldn't remember what it was. The words made Anna feel nervous and almost cried. She didn't, but instead said words that felt like they had been on the tip of her tongue for years. Liz answers with four words that Anna always wanted to hear from Elsa, including a cursed Elsa.

"Of course I do." Liz says

After the strangely nostalgic moment passed, Anna whizzed past her in a blur, taking hold of her wrist and dragging her to the closet. "Your boots, my jacket, let's go," she said, crossing off her mental checklist as she threw the items out and put on the one belonging to her. Elsa barely had her boots laced up before Anna was dragging her out the door again.

"Come oooon! Come on, come on, come on!"

They ran to Liz's favorite park, just down the block from where they lived. All the benches and playground equipment was coated in snow; there was nothing here for the average park goer to do.

Liz rolled the base of the snowman while Anna pelted her with snowballs, more in an attempt to playfully annoy her, as she claimed she was doing.

"Are you going to help or just fool around?" Liz asks her.

"Now fooling around, then helping."

Anna made the center of the body and worked on the head while the blonde found rocks to use as buttons and eyes.

As they built a snowman, the progress of building one became a snowball fight. Liz chased her younger friend, finding her hidden behind trees or benches in an attempt to escape her icy wrath, but the redhead was entirely unsuccessful. They both finally fell, exhausted, making snow angels while they tried to catch their breath.

It was the first time in a long time that Liz felt completely happy. She had her new best friend at her side, here to make her laugh when things got bad and give her courage when she felt she couldn't be brave. She smirked as she lay in the snow, watching quietly as more flakes drifted down to rest on her frigid skin.

Liz sat up, "Anna, can I tell you something?" She asks her friend.

"Sure, what's wrong?" Anna wonders.

Liz explains to Anna that she has been having dreams where she had the power to control ice and snow, she was the queen of a kingdom, she had a mother and a father who passed away in a shipwreck, but her parents are still alive. She ran away from her kingdom and created a palace made out of ice and snow. But, sometimes those dreams would turn into nightmares where someone with sideburns would try to kill her.

"My friends told me that dreams are memories, memories of another life." Anna explains. "Maybe memories from your ancestors. Tomorrow, can you tell me what your dream is about and maybe draw what you saw?" Anna asks her. Liz nodded.

Then, Anna's phone begins to ring and she answers it, "Hello." On the other line was Emma who tells her that Hal or Henry has now fallen into a sleeping curse and is now taken to the hospital and Emma tells her that she needs to with them and help them with something.

Anna tells Liz that the mayor needs to speak with her and she might come home late, she heads to her motorcycle and drives away.

* * *

Jacinda rushes by Hal's side as they wheeled him through the hallway into a room.

"Hal, can you hear me? Come on, Hal. Wake up, please. Come on, Henry. Come on. You can do it." Jacinda begged frantically from his side and watched as a nurse tried to make her leave the room.

"Ma'am, let me take you to-" "No, I am not going anywhere!"

Jacinda snapped at the poor nurse, jerking away from her and raising her hands defensively.

"There's no pupil response." Whale said quickly, removing his hand from Hal's eye and turning to address Jacinda. "What happened? Did he fall? Hit his head?" He asked rapidly.

"His airway's clear." Whale said shortly, looking worried. "Did he vomit? Any convulsion or disorientation?" "He took a bite of spaghetti, and then he just collapsed." Jacinda snapped .

"So, run the test for arsenic, or bleach, or Draino, or whatever could've done this to him!"

"He is showing no symptoms that would suggest neurotoxins." Whale said, raising his hands in a placating manner as he tried to calm her down.

"So, whatever's going on, that spaghetti is not the culprit."

"Well, what else could it be?" Jacinda demanded sharply.

"I don't know." Whale snapped back in exasperation. "That's what I'm trying to find out."

"He'll be okay though, right?" Jacinda asked and Whale turned to here, his brow drawn and his face pale.

"Right now, we just need to stabilize him, cause he's slipping away." He explained, to my growing horror. "Is there anything else that you can remember? Any little detail?" "I already told you everything. Do something!" Jacinda snapped loudly and I watched as Whale's patience snapped.

"Look, I understand you're frustrated, Miss Vidrio, I do. But I need something to treat. And, right now, there is no explanation. It's like…" He looked back to where Henry was being hooked to several machines

Jacinds dumps out the contents of Hal's bag onto a table. She sees the two books. Then, Regina and Emma arrive and asks Jacinda why the sheriff was called here. "Me and Hal were on a date, he was eating spaghetti and before I could take a bite, he collapsed and he wouldn't respond." She turns to Emma.

"I'll make sure to find out what happened to him and I'll throw the person who did this behind bars. He's been my friend my whole life, he's more than just a friend, he's family." Emma says, Jacinda gives her a hug.

"Thank you." Jacinda says to her.

Emma tells Jacinda that Hal loves to read fairy tales and he would be thankful of her if she reads to him.

* * *

Mary Margaret is leaving Granny's Diner and is headed to her car and David approaches her.

"I was wrong. About you, about me, about… Everything. I didn't believe in you, and I wish I had a good reason why. But, it's like I keep making these wrong decisions, and I don't understand why they keep happening. You know, ever since I woke up from that coma, my life hasn't made a lick of sense. Except for you… And what I'm feeling? It's love, Mary Margaret." He tells her.

"David, why are you here?" She asks.

"Because Kathryn put a down payment on an apartment in Boston. She's not going to use it, but I am. Unless, you give me a reason to stay." David explains.

Mary Margaret gets in her car and drives away.

* * *

Regina and Emma arrive at Granny's. "Are we actually investigating what happened?" Regina asks Emma, who tells her they aren't but they need to show others they are.

They talk to Granny and Ruby who were there when it happened.

"Where were you two when it happened and what were you doing?" Emma asked them.

Granny tells Emma that the two of them were washing the dishes from their night regulars, then Jacinda screamed and told them what happened to Henry. Emma then searched the table where Jacinda and "Hal" were having their date, two plates of spaghetti, one touched and one untouched, a wine glass was shattered on the ground with wine spilled on the ground. As she took pictures of the scene, Emma viualizes on what happened. Henry was eating spaghetti and was probably talking to Jacinda, he was about to drink his wine until the curse started to take effect on him and collapses on the ground, the wine glass he was holding fell and shattered.

Regina calls for Emma telling her to come to her. Regina points to something behind the counter, an egg shaped container. Regina and Emma looked at each other and nodded. Emma tells Granny that she is finished with the scene and she can clean them up. As Emma speaks to Granny's, Regina takes the container and leaves the diner. Emma leaves minutes later.

* * *

At the hospital, Jacinda reads an excerpt from one of the books by Hal's bedside.

"And, yes, she was beyond hope. Beyond saving. This was her end. When Prince Charming saw his beloved Snow White in her glass coffin, he knew all that was left was to say goodbye. He had to give her one last kiss. And when he did, true love proved more powerful than any curse. A pulse of pure love shuddered out and engulfed the land, waking up Snow White and bringing light to the darkness."

Jacinda stops reading and looks at Hal, "Please wake up Hal." She says.

Meanwhile, on the main street, David is packing up his truck. He looks at the clock tower one last time, then drives off. Mary Margaret watches him drive off from Granny's.

Emma and Regina drive to Regina's house where Anna, Lucy, and Hope were waiting. Regina and Emma enters and Regina places the egg container on the table, Regina opens it and it is empty.

"Knew it was empty, because we don't need that vial to wake up Henry, his curse and this curse will end on the day it ends."

"What was inside the container?" Hope asks.

"True love, the only magic powerful enough to transcend realms and break any curse. Luckily for us, years ago, Rumplestiltskin happen to have bottled some. From strands of Snow and David's hair, he made the most powerful potion in all the realm. So powerful, that when he created the dark curse, he placed a single drop on the parchment." Regina explained.

"Gold saved it for a rainy day, by asking my father to put in the belly of the beast." Emma says.

Suddenly, they felt a wave of light breeze flow through them and it spreads through the city of Storybrooke, David stops his truck once he was hit by the breeze before he could cross the town line.

The five walked out of the mayor's house, they then see purple smoke coming towards them.

"What is that?" Hope asks.

"That is magic."

The purple smoke continues to engulf Storybrooke. The smoke wraps around the clock tower, as the clock strikes 8:15.


End file.
